Month: July 2010

Andy sent me this track today to share with all my favorite Indie readers (ok, it was his management group, not him, but you’re still my favorite Indie readers). Usually, I’m not a big fan of folksy, slow Indie, but this one intrigues me. Take a listen and I’ll tell you why. Here, I’ll wait (click the link to download it):

Ok, got it? Yes, it’s got a sappy, sad-sack tone to it. And yes, his voice drones a little, almost as if he’s halfway between sleep and consciousness. But there’s something about this that I really like. I find it extremely moving. I even like the palindrome-type cliche that the chorus brings (I remember love – but love don’t remember me), even though that usually turns me off. It’s moving because it’s more than just a rusty old guitar and a voice. It’s the violins that get me. They add a nice bit of orchestration the piece. Sure, it’s amazingly simple, but a good violin track in a song can make all the difference. Take Black Rebel Motorcycle Club on serious depressants, mix in with some My Morning Jacket and Mountain Goats (without the high voice), throw in some violins and you’ve got a really haunting song. It’s like a campfire ghost story, with the raspiness of the hardened campfire veteran telling it. You can almost feel the chill of the night air, can’t you?

The Indie Girl and I went to see Mates of State a few weeks ago in Houston. Frequenters of this Indie life will know of this blogger’s extreme bias for Mates of State. Fantastic band. They’ve got such a fresh sound. And, frankly, their release in 2007: Re-arrange Us, is probably one of the best Indie Albums of the Indie Age (ahem, since the year 2000 or thereabouts). The concert did not disappoint. First, the venue, The Warehouse, is such an intimate setting. You really are THIS close to the band:

In their set, they played a good mix of old stuff (stuff from Team Boo even), as well as their newest stuff from their Crushes cover album (which, is quite the nice addition to your indie collection, if you haven’t purchased it yet) and even new, new stuff, slated to come out later.

I’ll post a few videos soon: Apparently the file format (AVI) isn’t supported on WordPress, which I find is odd.

Blogroll

Your Indie Life Blogger

Indie-ana Smith
Since he first heard They Might Be Giant's "Spider," Indie-ana Smith (yes, named after his favorite movie hero) has been an avid conossieur of fine music that mainstream radio ignores and otherwise living life to defy the mainstream. Is he passionately opinionated, or simply tired of the same old media offerings? You decide.